The question was about coach Giovanni Savarese changing the team’s tactics from week to week and how different it has been compared to years past with the Timbers. But defender Zarek Valentin’s answer went back to something that has been a popular refrain in Portland this season: mentality.

“I think Gio’s the most passionate coach I’ve ever played for in my life and that goes onto the players,” Valentin said. “You see that, you see us fighting and you can see he wants it.”

“This coaching staff really gives a shit,” Valentin added. “It’s explicit, sorry, but that’s the best way I can describe it. They care so much—they win and lose with us. That’s something I think not all teams have.”

When reporters ask Savarese about his penchant to pull out surprise formations and switch up his personnel, he tends to pivot the conversation to the team’s mentality. Perhaps that’s not merely...